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Dacic wants them to have their own parliament, courts and police force.

But Thaci, as well as the US and EU countries, believe the de facto partition of Kosovo could destabilise other post-Yugoslav countries with ethnic enclaves, such as Macedonia and Bosnia.

If there is no deal on normalising Kosovo-Serb relations before an EU foreign ministers' meeting on Monday, the ministers are unlikely to look favourably on granting Serbia in June a date for launching EU entry talks.

But Germany, which has taken the lead on EU policy on the Western Balkans, believes Kosovo should start talks on a pre-accession pact - a Stabilisation and Association Agreement - whatever the outcome.

In a statement released early Thursday morning, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who chairs the Kosovo-Serbia talks, said there are still "some hours left" to get a deal.

"I hope in that time, that both delegations will reflect on whether they can take the final steps necessary to finish this agreement and to move their people forward into the future," she noted.

Meanwhile, in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, MEPs will on Thursday vote on a resolution on Kosovo's integration with the rest of Europe.

They will also adopt progress reports on Serbia and Montenegro.

Speaking with MEPs on Wednesday, EU enlargement commissioner Stefan Fule said that "a turning point" had been reached in the bloc's relationship with Serbia.

"It is time for Serbia and Kosovo to move on from the past and look ahead to a common European future," he added.

Interview

The controversy over the new EU Commission top civil servant is revealing of what is wrong with EU institutions and how they are blocked by national governments, says award-winning Austrian novelist Robert Menasse.

Portugal's prime minister Antonio Costa, who vowed to fight austerity when elected into government in 2015, told the European parliament that the future of Europe depends, in part, on fiscal and economic convergence.

Opinion

The situation as Rome tries to form a government is turbulent and unpredictable. However, the most extreme eurosceptic policies floated during the election campaign are unlikely to happen - not least due to the precarious state of the Italian banks.